Band type can carrier



Dec. 6, 1960 T. w. FOSTER ETAL 2,963,198

` BAND TYPE CAN CARRIER Filed Nov. 1e, 195e f7 ff ff EN is ofconsiderable practical importance.

United States A Patent BAND TYPE CAN CARRIER Thomas W. Foster, Chicago,and Frank W. Hackman,

La Grange Park, Ill., assignors to Container Corporation of America,Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Dela- {ware Filed Nov. 16, 1956, Ser.No. 622,630

1 Claim. (Cl. 2211-112) This invention relates to carriers fortransporting Vchimed end cans and analogous containers, and has to dowith carriers of the open end band type.

Carriers of the type above referred to are well known and, extensivelyused, many millions of such carriers being used annually. This is ahighly competitive iield and one in which any saving in the cost ofproduction The carriers referred to are commonly formed from sheetmaterial, such as paperboard, from which the carrier blanks are cut, theblanks being then suitably folded and glued by machinery to produce thecarriers. It is important, from the cost of production standpoint, thatthe blanks be so cut and scored as to avoid waste of material and thatthey be adapted to high speed folding and gluing operations bymachinery. Our invention is directed to a carrier which requires aminimum of material, avoids waste of material, may be machine folded andglued at high speed, possesses adequate mechanical strength for its'intended use and may be produced at comparatively low cost. Furtherobjects and advantages of our invention will appear from the detaildescription,

kIn the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a can carrier embodying our invention;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the blank from which the carrier of Figure lis' produced;

Figure 3 is a top plan view, partly broken away, on a reduced scalerelative to Figure l, of a modified form of carrier embodying ourinvention; and

Figure 4 is a plan view of one end portion of a blank from which thecarrier of Figure 3 is produced.

The carrier of Figure 1 is produced from the blank of Figure 2, whichblank is cut from suitable sheet material, such as paperboard. The blankof Figure 2 is cut and -scored to provide a glue flap 5 attached along afold line 6 to a rst bottom wall panel -7 attached along a fold line 8to a first -side wall'panel 9 which is attached along aufold line 10 toa rst top Wall panel 11. The first top wall panel 11 is attached along afold line 12 to a second top wall panel 13, the panels 11 and 13constituting the top wall of the carrier and being integrally connectedalong fold line 12. A handle iiap 14 is cut from the midportion of thefirst top wall panel 11 and is integrally connected at its lower edge tothe inner edge ofthe second top wall panel 13 along a fold line 12a,which is a portion of the fold line 12. The handle flap 14 is providedwith two finger openings 1'5 and at the upper portion of each thereofwith a tab 16 attached to flap 14 along a fold line 17. The second topwall panel 13 is connected, along a fold line 18, to a second side wallpanel 19 connected to a second bottom wall panel 20, along a fold line21, panel 20 being connected along a fold line 22 to a center partitionpanel 23 to the midportion of the upper edge of which is attached, alonga fold line 24, a second handle ap 25 similar to the handle flap 14 andprovided with finger openings 26 each having at its upper portion a tab27 attached thereto along a fold line 28. The

panels 7, 11, 13 and 20 are all of the same width and the panels 9, 19and 23 are all of the same height. Each of the bottom wall panels andeach of the top wall panels is provided adjacent each end thereof, withan arcuate retaining tab 29 cut therefrom and attached thereto along afold line 3i). In the use `of the carrier, the retaining tabs 29 arefolded inwardly about the fold lines 30 into proximity with the innerfaces of the corresponding panels and engage the inner portions of the-chimes of the end cans of rows of cylindrical cans loaded into thecarrier, as is known.

In order to produce the carrier of Figure 1 from the blank of Figure 2,adhesive is applied to the inner surfaces of the handle flaps 14 and 25,except the tabs 16 and 27 thereof, it being understood that the innersurface of the blank is shown in Figure 2. The blank is then foldedabout the fold line 21 so as to bring the handle iiap 25 into registerwith the handle Hap 14, with panel 20 overlying panel 19 and panel 23overlying panel 119 in part and panel 13. Glue ap 5 is then folded overonto the inner face of panel 7 and a coating of adhesive is applied tothe then upper face of glue flap 5, after which the blank is folded overabout fold line 10 into position with panel 9 overlying panel 11 and theouter face of handle flap 25 and the upper portion of t-he then upperface of panel 23, and with panel 7 overlying the remainder of the upperface of panel 23, with the fold line 6 at the lower edge of panel 23 andthe adhesively coated surface of glue ap 5 seating upon thecorresponding lower portion of the upper face of panel 23. The blankthus folded is then maintained under appropriate pressure until theadhesive has set, thus producing, in at folded condition, the carrier,which may be shipped in bales or bundles in such condition.

In the folded carrier the handle flaps 1 4 and 25 extend from the top orupper edge of the center partition panel 23. The carrier may readily beset up for use by merely subjecting it to vertical pressure effectivefor moving the bottom wall panels 7 and 20 and the top wall panels 11and 13 outward to horizontal position, the setup carrier then appearingas shown in Figure 1. As previously noted, the retaining tabs V29 arefolded inwardly of the carrier into position adjacent the inner faces ofthe top wall panels and the bottom wall panels, preliminary to loadingthe cans by machinery into the carrier. The carrier shown is intended toreceive six cans arranged in two rows of three cans each, separated bythe center partition panel 23, the end cans of each row being retainedin the carrier by the retaining tabs 29.

When the carrier is loaded with cans, the load at the central portion ofthe carrier is supported to large extent by the handle flap 25 attacheddirectly to the upper kedge of the center partition panel 23 andconstituting an 11pward extension thereof. The portions of the centerpartition panel 23 extending beyond the ends of the handle flap 25provide shoulders 32 disposed in abutting relation to the underface ofthe top wall of the carrier at the central fold line 12 thereof andassist materially in supporting the load at the end portions of thecarrier trans'- mitted to the top Wall through the side Wall panels 9and 19. The blank of Figure 2 is thus Well suited for high speedmachinery folding and gluing operations and by cutting the handle flap14 from the top wall panel 11 a carrying handle structure of adequatemechanical strength is provided and waste of material is reduced to aminimum, wit-h the result that the carrier may be produced atcomparatively low cost.

The carrier of Figure 3 is produced from a blank the same as that ofFigure 2 except as to the center Wall panel. Referring to Figure 4, thecenter Wall panel 23a is provided, at its upper edge, with a handle ap25a of substantially inverted U-shape attached to the upper edge ofpanel 23a along fold lines 34 and provided with a tab 27a attached tothe upper or bight portion of handle `panel 25a along a fold line 28a.Two glue iiaps 33 of substantially U-shape are attached to the upperedge of the center partition panel 23a, adjacent the ends of the handleap 25a along foldA lines 34a constituting extensions of the fold lines34. It will be understood that the top wall panel of the blank of Figure4 corresponding to panel 11 of the blank of Figure 2 is cut to provide`at the midportion thereof a handle flap similar to the handle ap 25a.In order to produce the carrier of Figure 3 from the blank of Figure 4,the handle flap 25a and the glue flaps 33 are coated with a suitableadhesive, with the exception of the tab 27a, after which the blank isfolded in the same manner as above described in respect to the blank ofFigure 2. In the first step of the folding operation the glue flaps 33are disposed upon the inner face of the top wall panel corresponding topanel 11 of the blank of Figure 2, and straddle the inner end portionsof the retaining tabs 29 of that panel. The second step in the foldingof the blank is then performed, followed by the retention of the foldedblank under pressure until the adhesive has set, as previouslydescribed. The blank may be set up from its folded condition for use bysubjecting it to vertical pressure, as above described, and during suchsetting up operation the glue tiaps 33 are folded into position at rightangles to the center partition panel 23a, being then adhesively securedto the under face of the top wall panel 11ar and straddling the innerend portions of the retaining tabs 29 of that panel. The glue flaps 33thus provide reinforcement for the end portions of the top wall panel11a from w-hich the handle flap 25a has been cut and the shoulders ofthe center partition panel 23a, to which the glue flaps 33 are attached,assist in supporting the load at the end portion of the carrier in themanner previously described. The carrier of Figure 3, formed from theblank of Figure 4, is well suited for high speed machine folding andgluing operations and reduces waste of material to a minimum, which isconducive to comparatively low cost of production, an importantconsideration in this highly competitive field, as has been pointed outabove.

It will be understood that changes in detail may be resorted to withoutdeparting from the field and scope of our invention, and we intend toinclude all such variations, as fall within the scope of the appendedclaim, in this application in which the preferred forms only of ourinvention have been shown.

We claim:

A carrier formed from a one piece blank of sheet material comprising, aglue flap, a irst bottom wall panel, a first side wall panel, a firsttop wall panel, a second top wall panel, a second side wall panel, asecond bottom wall panel and a center partition panel, connectedtogether along fold lines in the order stated,

said blank further comprising a first handle flap cut from themidportion of said iirst top wall panel and attached to the inner edgeof said second top wall panel along a fold line coincident with the foldline between said top wall panels and a second handle liap attachedalong a fold to the midportion of the free edge of said partition panel;said blank initially being folded iiatwise with said partition panel andsecond bottom panel overlying said second side wall panel and second topwall panel with said second handle flap seating on and adhesivelysecured to said first handle ap and with said rst bottom wall panel andfirst side wall panel overlying Asaid partition panel and second bottomwall panel with said glue flap folded over onto the inner face of saidfirst bottom wall panel and seating on and adhesively secured to theupper face of said partition panel; said blank being erectible from itsflatwise folded condition to car,-` rier form by opposing pressuresapplied at the fold line between said partition panel and second bottomwall panel and at the fold line between said iirst side wall panel andfirst top wall panel; said blank, when so erected from its flatwisefolded condition, provided a carrier comprising when empty two bottomwall panels, two side wall panels attached at their lower edges alongfold lines to the outer edges of said bottom wall panels and extendingupward therefrom, a unitary top wall attached at its side edges alongfold lines to the upper edges of said side wall panels, a first handleap cut from the midlength portion of said top wall at one side of thelengthwise medial line thereof and integrally attached thereto at saidmedian line, a center partition panel attached at its lower edge along afold line to the inner edge of one of said bottom wall panels andextending therefrom upward to said top wall, a glue iiap Iattached alonga fold line to the inner edge of the other of said bottom wall panelsand extending therefrom upward along and adhesively secured to saidpartition panel at the side thereof facing the opening in said top wallcorresponding to said handle ap, and a second handle flap attached atits lower edge along a fold line to the upper edge of said partitionpanel and extending therefrom upward through said opening in face toface relation to said first-handle flap and adhesively secured thereto,said top wall being provided with lengthwise median fold lines extendingfrom the ends of said opening to the ends of said top wall.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,372,351 Arneson Mar. 22, 1945 2,614,737 Parker Oct. 2l, 19522,656,961) Carruth Oct. 27, 1953 2,768,741 Currie Oct. 30, 19562,790,590 Toensmeier Apr. 30, 1957 2,830,726 Foster Apr. 15, 1958

